1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to furniture drawer construction and, more particularly, to a novel construction wherein a drawer assembly for use in desks, cabinets or the like can be conveniently shipped to the consumer in compact form and is readily assembled at the intended destination.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Furniture pieces such as desks and cabinets, for example, are usually very bulky items. Their intended purpose is to store things and, accordingly, much of their bulk is taken up with space. As a consequence, these items are relatively expensive to ship from their point of manufacture to the ultimate consumer. Many forms of desks or cabinets because of their bulk are also easily damaged in shipment. Accordingly, the manufacturer must go to some lengths to adequately protect them with suitable packaging to anticipate possible damage in shipment.
Furniture is available which can be shipped in disassembled form for assembly by the consumer. In fact, such furniture has become popular in recent times largely because it can be both manufactured and shipped relatively inexpensively and resulting cost savings can be passed on to the consumer. In addition, growing numbers of consumers are becoming generally accustomed to purchasing merchandise of all kinds in unassembled form and then assembling it at the desired destination. As a result, many items can be purchased today which have been specifically designed to be easily assembled at their destinations by persons having even modest mechanical abilities and few tools.
Drawers are a component of some furniture which are by their typical construction quite bulky. The whole purpose of a drawer is to provide a container defining space within which items of various types may be stored. Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a drawer construction wherein the components of the drawer can be packaged essentially flat such that they are economically shipped and resistant to damage. It is further desirable to provide such a drawer construction which may be easily assembled at its intended destination. It is further desirable to provide such a drawer construction which has relatively few component pieces. Still further, it is desirable to provide such a drawer construction which is very sturdy in assembled condition and equals in quality and strength a typical premanufactured assembly.